The Proximation of Hello and Goodbye

1

"I heard that," Ena sighs. "And you're right, but he is an asshole for choosing his job over you."

"Can we just drop it?" He groans.

"Sure, but let us know when you get home, m'kay? Blondie may be cute but we have no way of knowing if he's a psycho or not," Ena observes.

Izuku grabs the pitchers from the sink and carries them back to where the blenders are stationed. "Deal, now, can we finish closing so we can get out of here?"

Akasuki giggles, "Someone's in a tizzy." She starts to head to the back, "Yeah, we'll get outta here in no time."

Several minutes later Izuku sighs and takes off his apron for the night, wrapping it up and tucking it away for the next day. He walks around the counter after saying goodbye to Akasuki and Ena to find Katsu lazily scrolling through his phone. He walks to his table and waves, "I'm ready if you are."

Katsu looks up from his phone, his expression stoic. He stands and shoves the phone into his back pocket. "That was a little quicker than I expected," he announces.

Izuku rubs his eyes and yawns, "Yeah, Ena, Suki, and I are usually pretty fast when we all pitch in."

For a moment, Izuku swears he saw Katsu tense his body. He's not sure why he would, he's not even sure that's what happened. I'm just tired. One way or the other, the pinkish hue that colors his cheeks makes him seem so much sweeter. Katsu sighs, "Come on, we should get going." Katsu walks past him and toward him and Izuku follows behind at a distance he feels is comfortable. Upon stepping into the storm, Katsu quickens his pace, rushing to a car parked on the curb not far from the door. Not far behind, Izuku makes it to the car with only wet shoes and shoulders. Katsu huffs as he starts the car and turns the heat on, "So, where to?"

"Oh, you can just go this way. My street is the fourth on the right from here," Izuku explains. He watches as Katsu's hands confidently shift the car into gear and start to work the steering wheel. He tears his eyes away and looks out the window, trying to distract himself from the unnamed sense of unease he has. He clears his throat, "Thanks for the ride."

The car slows to a stop at a light as Katsu begins to reply. "Don't sweat it," he shrugs. Izuku watches as Katsu's eyes flicker toward him and back to the road. "So, you got a name, or do I just keep calling you nerd?"

"Oh, right, my name is Izuku," he answers plainly.

" Izuku, " Katsu says as if trying to see the way the name feels coming from his mouth. Izuku hates what the sound does to him, he wishes he could untie the knots in his stomach and shove his face in a bucket of ice. Why did I like the way he said my name? Katsu smirks, "Nice name, but I think 'nerd' rolls off the tongue a little more smoothly."

He frowns, "Why?"

"Couldn't say. What, you don't like your nickname?"

It's not so much he disliked "nerd," it's more that he liked the way Katsu said his real name. He doesn't believe he said it any certain way, but the way it sounded felt similar to listening to the laughter of your favorite person, it sounded bright. "No. That's not it. Do you give nicknames to every stranger you meet or just the ones you offer rides to?"

He flips the turn signal on before turning onto Izuku's street. "It depends," he replies. Izuku watches as Katsu's expression changes from casual to something more thoughtful as his eyes scan the area around the car the best he can. His lips form into a slight pout, "I think we might be neighbors. Which one's yours?"

"End of the street, on the left," Izuku replies. "What makes you think we might be neighbors?"

"This area looks familiar," he murmurs, looking around as if for a tell-tale sign. "But I ran into a similar predicament on the other side of town too. Doesn't matter. Looks like we made it." He shifts the car into park and sits back into his seat seemingly more relaxed.